Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Makayla ~ Medical Necessity

She programmed the medical computer to do a complete scan and report, then settled on the thin table. There were sensors embedded in that table as well as in the wide metal arm above her. That arm would move about six inches above her body while it scanned her from head to toe. It wasn't fully enclosed, like an MRI tube on Earth, but it made her a little crazy.

She took a deep breath and pressed the button to start the process. Then begged Kaitlyn, "I have to lie here for thirty minutes without moving while the bed and this upper arm examine every part of my body. I need to remain still and quiet. Distract me. Talk about the best thing on this planet for you and why, and the worst. Tell me stories, Kaitlyn."

She could hear her sister's voice go soft. "Viktal is the best thing. I love everything about that man. How he makes me feel. How he treats me." She sighed. "How he looks. I go all gushy inside whenever I'm doing something, and I glance up to see him coming toward me. I can't believe how lucky I was to find that man." She paused for a moment and then giggled. "Okay. How lucky I was that he found me! But he listens to me, to what is important."

Makayla didn't say anything. She just kept her eyes closed and concentrated on breathing slowly so the movement of her lungs wouldn't screw up the testing. She had no intention of repeating this process. But she could hear from Kaitlyn's tone that she was telling the truth. Whatever was bothering her sister… it wasn't Viktal. She hadn't thought so, but it was nice to have that confirmed. It was one thing she didn't have to worry about.

Kait continued, "The first few days in the village, I enjoyed spending time with him. But I also knew that no matter how I felt about Viktal, I would need to leave at some point and go find you and Lauren. Or you would find me… and it would help all of us if I learned as much as I could about Megoth. I had a list in my head of items I needed to learn, to get, or figure out before I tried to find the cave where you and Lauren were. I explained to him how our parents, grandparents, and then you Makayla… trained Lauren and me how to survive in any wilderness. I talked to him about our family. About how we spent a great deal of time on Earth, making sure we could survive anything that happened, no matter what environment we were in or what disaster occurred. I explained how important it was for me to learn to survive on this planet.

"At first, he insisted that he would protect me. He resisted until we stood together and watched a dirty red bug the size of my hand crawl across the sand. If it hadn't moved, I wouldn't have noticed it because it was the same color as the dirt on the ground. This bug had dark, thick pincher-type claws on the front of its body that reminded me of a King Crab. I pointed and explained that I didn't know if that creepy bug was deadly, something to avoid, or if I could eat it if I was starving and didn't have other choices."

Makayla couldn't keep the grin from spreading over her face. She'd seen that bug and wondered the same thing. She hoped Kaitlyn found out.

"I turned to look and noticed him frowning. As if he couldn't decide if he should help me or not. I could almost hear his internal conflict." Kaitlyn giggled. "So, I tried to paint a picture for him. Reminding Viktal that he couldn't be with me every moment. He couldn't protect me when I went to the bathroom. What if there was a poisonous creature in there and I didn't recognize it? Or I could get separated from him and need to find water.

"I explained again that from the time I was a small child, I had learned how to take care of myself in any wilderness on Earth. I stressed that knowing these things was a big part of who I am. That to feel safe, I needed to learn everything I could about Megoth.

"I watched him realize how important this was to me and my safety. Viktal promised he would arrange for teachers. Said they have elders in the village who taught the children how to live on this planet. He also promised to help teach me when he could. And he didn't waste time. Explaining that the big-ass bug crawling in front of us was called a Catdy. Then said it wouldn't kill me, but if the claws closed on a finger or toe… it hurts. He also said it wasn't edible, but the bugs were good to have around because they eat poisonous insects.

"From then on, when Viktal wasn't taking care of the village, he was careful to explain about each bug we saw and to teach me what plants were edible and which ones were poisonous. He remembered to ask one of the elders to take me out in the desert and show me how to find water, what organic material could be used for shelter, and what creatures were edible. The elder also started teaching me about the things that could kill me on this planet. I asked him to start with the top three." Kaitlyn grew silent for a moment and then added. "Since we are going to live on Megoth for the rest of our lives, we need to get serious about learning more about it. I haven't spent any time in the desert since I was rescued from Dorvan."

Makayla heard the subtext of Kaitlyn's comment. That she'd been sitting in that desert when the rhinoceros-looking aliens hurt the elder assigned to teach her, and then left him for the dead when they kidnapped Kait. She was nervous about leaving the perceived safety of the village.

Kayla decided right then that she would arrange a camping trip with her sister and cousin. It would be great if their men could go too—but if not, she was sure she could get a few of the elders to accompany the three women. They really should learn about their environment and Kaitlyn needed her family surrounding her the first time she entered that desert, so she would feel safe again.

A shifting noise caught her attention, and she realized the medical computer arm had ended the downward sweep and started back up. The scan was almost finished. She heard Kaitlyn sigh again. The sound was sad. Whatever her sister was thinking about was upsetting. She concentrated on Kait so she wouldn't miss anything she said and tried to ignore the fact that the machine hovered over her mid-section.

Kaitlyn didn't make her wait, "The worst thing about this planet is that I always wanted to teach children and now I'll never get the chance. That has been my dream since I was a little girl. I was the homebody, the quiet one. Growing up, I was more comfortable dealing with the animals and babysitting all the neighborhood kids.

"It makes me sad and so angry that we were kidnapped right before Lauren and I completed our last semester of college. Now I'll never get to teach."

The machine beeped, and the arm raised enough for Makayla to slip out. She looked at her sister, sitting slumped, dejected, on the lone chair. Her dark hazel eyes were hidden from view, her long, straight brown hair covered her face. Kait's cream-colored skin was even paler than normal.

Kayla went immediately to her sister and hugged her. Hard. "That's not true," she whispered. "You don't need your teaching degree on Megoth. And there are lots of children in the village. You can teach here. You just have to figure out what the children are being taught, who is teaching it, and where you fit in."

Kaitlyn

Kait pulled back to meet her sister's gaze. Kayla's deep chocolate eyes were sparkling and fierce.

She sucked in a quick breath. "Oh, hell. Why didn't I think of that?"

Makayla laughed. Her long dark hair, full of ringlet curls, bounced when she moved. Her mocha-colored skin was flushed with strong emotion. "You've been a little busy. Getting kidnapped, twice. Falling in love, then getting kidnapped for the third time. You haven't had time to think about anything else."

Kaitlyn nodded and smiled. Her sister was right. And when Kayla laughed, it was hard for her to stay sad.

Now that it was her turn to use the machine, Makayla moved the chair right next to her side. Kaitlyn didn't close her eyes—she watched her sister. Being in this room was hard enough. With her eyes closed, she kept thinking of the Siloth doctor and her first kidnappers.

So she focused on Makayla. Her sister was telling her story about the night Lauren and Kait were taken from the ranch by the Siloth, and Kayla was left behind.

Her voice full of emotion, she explained, "I was laying behind the house after I climbed out of the library window. Two of the Siloth came from the front talking about how their translators were working great. Then one of them complained about how they'd been told the girls weren't guarded."

Her eyes met Kait's. "The other alien corrected him, saying that there wasn't a male to guard the breeders. He referred to me as ‘ Just an old woman past childbearing years with a weapon that can't kill us.' I clearly remember those words and his snicker."

Kaitlyn couldn't move or comment. She had to lie still. But her eyes widened at the words. Makayla would have been pissed .

"Then they said something about taking the ones who could be trained and loading them with the rest." Her eyes met Kaitlyn's again. "I was so angry. That they would come into our home and take you. Their comments made me believe they had more girls than the two of you. And that was true.

"Falcon told me that it didn't make sense for the Siloth to come to Earth for two girls and I agreed. Then one of the men said something about the earth man didn't lie . He chortled that the girls they gathered this trip were a really good sample of what this planet had to offer, and they needed to get back to Brac.

"Falcon and I figured out later that Brac was an alien from the planet Zylar. He had already been captured by the ruler of that planet and imprisoned for crimes against women. But we never discovered who the Siloth dealt with on Earth. The last thing I heard them say had to do with them not needing to waste their time on me. That the old one wasn't worth anything and I could shoot them all I wanted because the shot wouldn't kill them… it just stung a bit."

Kaitlyn wanted to laugh.

Her sister's expression was savagely happy. "I shot and killed one of them, wounded the other. Then took off running and jumped down into the old root cellar to hide from them. You know we haven't used that hole for food storage since great grandma's time. But as children, it was our playhouse, an imaginary bomb shelter, and hell… I even remember using it as a pretend hideout from aliens. Only this time, I used it for the real thing.

"I've done that jumping slide maneuver a hundred times. Not just as a kid, but when I was a soldier, I did something similar. My body slipped right into the small, dirt-packed space, but there was something on the ground that made me stumble and fall. I heard something snap and knew I'd broken a bone in my leg. It hurt so damn bad I wanted to scream, but clamped my teeth together and stayed silent. Hoping the aliens wouldn't find me.

"When it got quiet, I climbed out of the hidey-hole just in time to watch the ship shoot into space. I drew pictures of it and gave them to the local sheriff. My leg was badly broken, so I had to go to the hospital. The doctor told me it would take a month or more to heal and I needed surgery and a long hospital stay. When I refused, he put me in a walking cast and let me go home.

"I never figured out who the Earth contact was for the aliens. I wanted it to be the sheriff because he pissed me off. I gave him drawings of the spaceship and he threw them in the trash. I watched him from the window. He also kept threatening to arrest me if I didn't tell him what really happened to you and Lauren."

Kaitlyn was pissed, too. That damn sheriff made her mad. Not listening to Makayla. Thinking she would hurt her sister or cousin. She'd like to have five minutes alone with the man. She almost missed what Makayla said next.

"I've asked Falcon to move the Siloth ship close to our home base. He will go through the electronics and get every bit of information out of their systems. The goal is to figure out who helped them. I thought about it and decided there might be more than one person helping the aliens since there were six additional Earth women taken from different parts of the south. Once we know who they were, we can turn the information over to the Guardians and they will make sure those who helped the aliens kidnap women from Earth… are dealt with.

"While Falcon strips information from the computers, I'm going into every room and remove whatever I find. Every water tube and piece of clothing, or anything else of value. I'm going to strip that ship down to the bones."

Just then, the machine beeped, indicating the examination was finished. Kaitlyn sat up and leaned toward her sister. "I want to help search the ship. Maybe we should make this a group project. At least in the beginning. Lauren is going to want to help, so will several of the other women."

Makayla nodded. "True. I bet they will all want to do it."

The sisters sat silently for several moments. Kaitlyn frowned and asked, "So, how long will it take to get the results?"

Kayla snorted. "See that flashing green light on the small console?"

Kait nodded.

Kayla sighed. "The results are on that machine. We just have to go read them." She stood and walked over. Bent to scan the details. A few moments in, she gasped.

Before she could question her sister, Viktal ran into the room with Kaitlyn's communications tablet.

"Tallie's calling you," he said urgently. "She appears scared and upset."

Kaitlyn didn't waste any time. She took the tablet and moved so she could see her friend. "Tallie, I'm here," she reassured the alien woman. "What's wrong?"